Donations pour in for fallen firefighte

APPLETON (WKOW) — Donations have been pouring in to aGoFundMe pageset up for the Appleton firefighter killed in a shootout Wednesday with a man first responders had come to help.

The donations include $10,000 from Justin Watt, likely the Wisconsin native and Houston Texans defensive end JJ Watt.

By Friday morning, more than 1,000 people had donated more than $70,000 of the $100,000 goal.

Watt is known for his philanthropy and for keeping close ties to his home state.

Last July, Watt donated $10,000 to the GoFundMe page of Sun Prairie firefighter Corey Barr, who was killed in a gas main blast that leveled much of downtown.

He also had donated heavily to hurricane relief efforts in Texas.

Lundgaard, a 14-year veteran with the department, was killed in the line of duty Wednesday night when a medical call escalated into a shooting near the city’s transit center. He leaves behind a wife and three children.

Appleton’s fire chief got permission from the Lundgaard family to set up aGoFundMe account.

You can also mail or drop off donations to the following address:

Friends of the Appleton Fire Department

700 N. Drew St.

Appleton, WI 54911

100 percent of donations will go to Lundgaard’s family.

On Thursday night more than 150 people paid tribute to Lundgaard and the other victims during a vigil in downtown Appleton. It was organized by a pastor who heard Wednesday’s gunshots.

“So many of us, just read these stories again and again and now here’s it’s happening in our own backyard. So I think just being real and not shying away from those questions as people, but knowing that God can handle questions like that, and hopefully give a lot of hope and peace in the process,” said Pastor Mike Novotny.

The vigil included speakers, music and prayer.

The other victims of Wednesday’s shooting are recovering. An Appleton police officer has been released from the hospital, and officials say a woman is in stable condition.

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